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Shares of container shipping firm Neptune Orient Lines Ltd
jumped as much as 6 percent, recovering from three
straight sessions of losses on expectations of an improvement in
freight rates.

As of 0318 GMT, NOL shares were up 5.7 percent at S$1.12 and
have lost 0.4 percent since the start of the year, compared to
the FTSE ST Industrials Index's 20.9 percent
rise. Since the start of this month, NOL had dropped 8.6 percent
to Wednesday's closing price of S$1.06.

Maybank Kim Eng said it expects NOL's strength in the
Trans-pacific trade to be a key driver to a profitable 2013, as
freight rates for the route are seeing further signs of
improvement helped by a recovering U.S. housing market and
cooperation between liners.

The brokerage said A.P. Moller-Maersk's plans to move away
from the shipping segment may not be bad news for NOL, as the
Danish company's shipping business was mainly focused on
Asia-Europe trade, which was hit by the European debt crisis,
but the segment only accounts for 16 percent of NOL's volumes.

OCBC Investment Research initiated coverage of Petra Foods
Ltd with a 'buy' rating and a target price of S$2.98,
as the cocoa company has a dominant market share in Philippines
and Indonesia and is likely to benefit from rising consumer
demand in the region.

By 0239 GMT, Petra shares were up 1.1 percent at S$2.70 and
have surged 45.9 percent since the start of the year, compared
with Thomson Reuters Global ex US Food Processing Index's
7.8 percent rise.

Petra is one of the world's largest producers and suppliers
of cocoa ingredients, and its extensive distribution network and
strong brand name give it a competitive advantage and high
barriers of entry, OCBC said.

Petra's sales for its branded consumer division have grown
20.2 percent a year during 2004-2011, boosted by increasing
consumption in Asia, and OCBC expects this to continue growing
at double-digit rates.

The company has key international clients including Nestle,
Cadbury, the Mars Group and Meiji Group, which will help support
its earnings.

CIMB Research downgraded CapitaMall Trust to
'underperform' from 'outperform' and lowered its target price to
S$2.23 from S$2.43, citing the shopping mall owner's plans to
raise funds despite the lack of funding needs.

As of 0137 GMT, CapitaMall Trust units fell 2.4 percent to
S$2.07, but have gained nearly 22 percent since the start of the
year, compared to the FTSE ST Real Estate Industrial Trust's
32 percent rise.

CapitaMall Trust said on Thursday it would raise S$250
million by selling 125 million new units at S$2.00 each, which
would go towards funding capital expenditure needs and upgrading
works for its properties.

CIMB cut its 2013-2014 distribution per unit estimates for
CapitaMall Trust by up to 4 percent to reflect the new issue,
which translates to an unattractive yield of 4.8 percent for
next year compared to its peers.

"Despite the good placement price and small dilution... we
are disappointed that CapitaMall Trust has chosen to raise
equity in the absence of major funding needs for acquisitions
and asset enhancement initiatives," said CIMB in a report.

The brokerage said it understands that the trust has no
concrete plans for acquisitions for now even though it remains
on the look out.